In the King's Palace
by Hulihana
Summary: What is happening with Wichita and Columbus while Tallahassee is occupied in the King's Jungle Room. Takes place during Zombieland: Double Tap.


**A/N: First and foremost, I do not own Zombieland, this is merely my own imagination. Now that that is over, this is kind of new. I've always written fics for Castle but something about this movie has really caught my attention. There is depressingly little written for this movie series and even less of that is about the cannon couple so I've decided to write my own addition to the second movie. I've also spent the last week writing the beginning of a much longer story that picks up at the end of the first movie but whether or not that one actually ever gets published is still up in the air. Anyways, for whoever actually reads this, let me know what you think.**

* * *

"What kind of hotel only has one spare bedroom?" Wichita grumbled as she and Columbus made their way down the hall with their bags. They had decided to call it a night not long after they had arrived at the Hounddog Hotel and discovered that Little Rock had taken off west with the hippie.

"Well, there is a lot of other stuff here." Columbus answered, indicating the Elvis memorabilia that they were passing.

Wichita scoffed and pushed past him to the door behind which the last bedroom lay.

She entered the room with Columbus right behind her and sighed when she saw the single queen sized bed in the room.

"I can sleep on the floor out there." the man behind her offered, as he too realized there was only one bed and no couch.

"It's fine." she sighed, setting her bag down on the small table under the window. They were adults and even if they weren't really together any more they could still platonically share a bed with one another. She may be angry with him, but part of her knew she deserved everything that had happened. She's the one that had left and been too slow coming back.

Columbus shut the door behind them and set his bag down without further comment. His breath hitched as he watched her shed her black leather jacket and lay it over the back of the chair. The white shirt she wore underneath rode up revealing the smooth skin on her abdomen and his fingers itched to reach for her. She had broken his heart but that didn't mean he didn't still love her.

She had been his first everything and for ten years he thought she'd be his only and his last. Of course, that all went up in flames when she ran from his proposal and then he had brought Madison home just in time for her to come back.

They were both lost in thought as they prepared for bed, neither speaking aloud.

Wichita stole a quick glance at her, whatever he was, before she began to unbutton her pants. She hated sleeping in jeans and it wasn't like he hadn't seen her in only underwear before, she decided.

Columbus struggled not to stare at her long, pale legs as she laid her pants over the chair as well. He realized he shouldn't be surprised that she wouldn't be sleeping in jeans. He struggled to sleep in such a confining fabric too and decided that if she was going to be comfortable he may as well be too. It wasn't long before he had shucked his pants and placed not only them but also his jacket and over-shirt onto the remaining chair leaving him in a t-shirt and his boxers without further comment..

By the time he was finished undressing, Wichita was already in bed. Columbus flicked the light switch and made his way carefully back across the now darkened room to the bed and crawled in beside her.

They lay next to one another, careful not to touch as an uncomfortable silence descended. There were so many things that needed to be said but neither of them knew how to start.

Neither talked and neither slept, but the silence was still broken by the sound of a slamming door followed soon after by a rhythmic thudding from across the hall.

"Oh, God!" Wichita exclaimed in disgust as they heard a feminine moan and realized what was happening.

Not knowing what to say, Columbus remained silent.

"I'm over hear, worrying myself to death about Little Rock and he's busy getting some." she growled shifting angrily onto her side so she's facing away from the door.

"Well, it has been a while for him." Columbus conceded, wishing that he were anywhere else.

Her only response is a growl as she sticks her head under her pillow.

Columbus stared at the line of her body under the blankets in the darkness. How had everything gone so wrong between them? He wondered to himself. As angry as he was with her, he still regretted sleeping with Madison, and while he couldn't fault Tallahassee, he knew how distraught Wichita was over not having found her sister.

"Little Rock is strong, she'll be alright until we can go get her." he finally said, speaking over the sounds emanating from the other room.

Wichita peeked out from under the pillow with a sigh.

"You're right. I really am sorry about what happened to Madison." she said, "She didn't deserve that."

Columbus turned onto his side to face her in the darkness. "I didn't love her you know?" he admitted.

The curve of her lips was the only answer he needed, but she still spoke, "I know."

He scooted a little closer to her to put his hand on her arm where it rested on the mattress between them, trying to offer her what comfort he could. They both knew that what he hadn't said was also true. He was still in love with her. He just didn't know if she was still in love with him.

"I'll give Tal some credit, he has stamina." she broke the silence once again as the thumping continued. Columbus laughed softly.

"Do you remember that time in Colorado that we broke the bed?" he asked,

"Yeah and Tal didn't let us live it down for a month." she added.

"Well, we did nearly come crashing through the floor on top of him." Columbus laughed. Wichita had laid her head back down on the pillow and was now close enough that he could feel her breath against his lips.

"I don't know how he does it," Columbus admitted, "we've never made it long without jumping into bed but sometimes he goes years."

"It has been a while." Wichita acknowledged and Columbus felt a twinge of guilt. She had been gone for nearly a month but it had only been a few days since his romp with Madison.

"So you didn't-" he broke off, unsure if he actually wanted an answer to the question he had begun to ask.

"Sleep with anyone?" she asked, finishing his question. Columbus could only nod in the darkness, his chest tight with anxiety.

"No" she said on a sigh and he felt some of the tightness dissipate. "Little Rock was with Berkeley and I had to keep an eye on the two of them. If she got pregnant, I'd never forgive myself."

"She's smart. You raised her, remember? I'm sure she'll be fine." he said softly, the sounds of passionate lovemaking having finally quieted. "That's what I'm worried about." she admitted. He couldn't miss the way Wichita's eyes had become bright with unshed tears and he gave her arm a quick squeeze.

Columbus went silent again, remembering back to shortly after they had moved into the White House. The condoms had all expired years before but they still used them, deciding that something was better than nothing. One particular night they had been celebrating their 6 year anniversary and he hadn't pulled out fast enough. The condom broke and they had spent the next two weeks worrying over whether or not they had made a huge mistake.

Now, he couldn't help but feel dread at the idea of having a three year old child travelling with them as they repeatedly put themselves into danger. She hadn't been pregnant but it was the last time he had made that mistake. He knew all too well how easy it could be to mess up.

Wichita sighed and the first tear escaped from the corner of her eye. Unable to restrain himself any longer Columbus groaned and gathered her in his arms, holding her as she cried against his chest.

He wasn't truly surprised when she leaned her head back and captured his lips in a kiss. She didn't like to be vulnerable, even with him, and had always resorted to a physical distraction. What surprised him was his body's reaction to her kiss.

He was fully erect in what felt like seconds, his boxers providing little cover to hide his reaction. She moaned into his mouth and reached down to cup him, moving until she was pressed fully along his body.

"Wichita, we shouldn't." he mumbled against her lips, but his body betrayed him once again as his hips thrust into her touch against his best intentions.

"I'm sorry Columbus, I'm so sorry. I never should have left." she whispered into his mouth as she withdrew him from the confines of his boxers and stroked him with a well practiced motion.

Finally giving in he rolled them until he came to rest over her. His sure fingers tripped down her sides and over her hip until it came to a stop at her panties. When her legs fell apart on a sigh he pressed his fingertips against her and felt how damp the thin material was.

Pushing it to the side, he stroked her, spreading the moisture from her entrance up to her clit and rubbing it in tight circles just how he knew she liked it.

She whined into his mouth and her hips jerked against his hand.

"Columbus please." she begged as she swirled her thumb over his cock, gathering the drop of precum that had leaked out and spreading it against the blunted head.

"I don't have a condom." he said and she nearly sobbed into his lips. "I don't care."

"Wichita" he was torn. He desperately wanted to be with her, but they both knew how risky it was.

"Did you catch something?" she asked and he couldn't help but flinch. It wasn't exactly her fault that he had chosen to sleep with the first person he found after she had left. And he couldn't really blame her for asking, but the question hurt all the same.

"What? No. We were careful." he answered.

"Then I trust you."

He pulled away from her kiss to look into her eyes. They still shined with worry and everything that hadn't been said, but she seemed clear headed and sure. He still had to ask, "Are you sure?"

She gave him a gentle smile and nodded her head in affirmation before capturing his lips again, and he gave in. With one more stroke of his fingers against her clit, he pulled his hand away and removed her panties. Her hand, still on his manhood, guided him to her entrance and positioned him against it. Looking again into her eyes he gave her one more chance to change her mind, and she gave another nod. With that, he pushed inside of her with no protection for the first time.

She felt like home, he realized once he was fully seated inside. It felt different and yet so familiar to be ensconced in her molten center without the barrier of a condom. It was the same sensation he had known for all these years and yet so much more intense than when there was still a barrier between them. She didn't let him revel for long, thrusting her hips against his and grinding against him as her tongue slicked between his lips.

Then their own headboard was bouncing rhythmically against the wall as the couple moved together in unison. He pumped in and out of her at a practiced pace, reaching under her shirt to tweak her nipple in a way that he knew drove her wild. They had made love so many times over the years but it never got old. From his first fumbling time to the last night before she had left; it was always amazing, and this was no exception.

Wichita dug her nails into his back, leaving welts that wouldn't heal for days as she approached the edge, her entire body strumming with anxiety and tension that she'd been carrying since the moment that he had proposed. He could sense that she was close from the way that she gripped him so tightly it was almost painful.

When he reached between their bodies and pressed his thumb to her clit, she shattered. Columbus muffled her scream with his lips but knew that they likely weren't being any more subtle than the older couple across the hall had been.

The pulsing of her inner walls around him as she shook through her climax was too much for him and he pulled out quickly, spraying his load over her engorged pussy as he swore. That had nearly been really bad.

He made an effort to fall to the side instead of on top of her as Wichita shivered with aftershocks beside him.

"I'm sorry I-" he began looking around for a cloth to help her clean up but she cut him off with a hand over his mouth.

"I said, I trust you. Whatever happens." she whispered, shifting to rest her head on his chest and press a kiss to the hollow of his throat. She felt lax now, the tension having been drained from her body as she curled up where she had always belonged, beside her man.

"I love you" he answered simply, feeling the drag of sleep as his eyes became heavy.

He could have sworn he heard her murmur "I love you too" as they drifted off wrapped in one another's arms. Maybe, just maybe, things would be ok.


End file.
